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It will also be pushed out to Windows 7 users via the Automatic Updates service over the coming weeks, starting with customers already running the Developer and Release Preview versions of the browser that were made available previously.

The version for Windows 7 differs in many respects from that one, but promises enhancements including faster page loading and faster JavaScript performance, while reducing CPU usage and improving battery life on mobile PCs, Microsoft said.

"With this final release, IE11 brings the same leading standards support – with improved performance, security, privacy and reliability, that consumers enjoy on Windows 8.1 – to Windows 7 customers," said Microsoft's Partner Group program manager Rob Mauceri and Sandeep Singhal, director of Windows Networking, writing on the IEBlog.

As previously detailed by Microsoft, IE11 includes support for WebGL, a Javascript API for rendering 2D and 3D graphics inside the browser with hardware acceleration by the GPU. However, the release version scans for unsafe WebGL content and implements a software-based renderer to complement the GPU, Microsoft disclosed.

Microsoft singled out Javascript performance as one key feature, enhanced via an updated version of its Chakra just-in-time (JIT) compiler. On Windows 7, IE11 is 9 percent faster than IE10, which is nearly 30 percent faster than the nearest competitive browser, Microsoft claimed.

IE11 includes support for the emerging ECMAScript 6 standard, plus improvements to make common browsing activities faster. Updates in form editing controls to preserve formatting make copy and paste from Office and other apps faster and more accurate, the firm said.